On a more serious note, I'd just recommend they not underestimate their conditions. Utah can be unpredictable. Something as simple as setting up camp on a sandy bar can be fatal in a flash flood from a storm miles away. They'll most likely be safe from human predators, but when the Jr DFs go out, I make sure they are not defenseless. That, and a sober careful plan with lotza pics texted back to dad ought to produce a life time of memories! They are in for a treat.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
You can be concerned, and offer advice.

But she is, what, 21 or 22 years old? She is an adult. It is the time when you don't really get a say in this sort of thing.

She's talking about a trip to national parks. Not a trip to Syria. She'll be fine.

Pretty much my thoughts when reading the OP's post, especially since she's "been on her own" before this.

I have read her trip itinerary.

They are going to well-known National Parks where there are a lot of people and armed Rangers.

They will be fine.

As one person stated they should dress down a bit.

No short shorts or as I read they plan to take tank tops. Not a great choice for young women camping and then they will be in the Sun a lot.

Shorts should be of the kind that cover the knees in case they slip or fall while hiking. Loose fitting cotton t-shirts are always great to wear when hiking, you get protection from the sun and the looseness allows the air to help dry the sweat and keep you comfortable.

Sunblock and more Sunblock. Brimmed hats to cover the ear tops that get sun burned real easy.

Day pack or good sized fanny packs with water and snacks.

Again they will be fine.

I can only wonder at how some people view the world around them. Millions of people travel every year in this country without being raped, robbed, abducted, or killed, and almost none of them even worry about such things. And of the people one or more of those things does happen to, a large percentage are victimized right in their own towns, homes, or places of work where they spend most of their time. Do we ask, “My daughter goes to work every day; is it safe?”

A little situational awareness goes a very long ways, and on a hiking trip good, appropriate hiking gear makes the experience much easier and more enjoyable.

Dang, I remember being in my early 20's......

....one (more) talk about drinking and drugs wouldn't hurt. Get a bunch of 20 somethings together on a road trip, and suddenly they meet someone else along the way, and that someone is going to bust out a flask or something that lights up...........

The only thing I can add is for her to have a good quality hand ax. This is probably the most versatile and useful tool when hiking and camping.

I hope she has a great trip.

Mike

Worry as a parent is the price we pay for the privilege of being a Dad.

Encourage her to go and have fun. Be careful and smart. Mother Nature can be a cruel teacher.

There are a lot of benefits to a nice rugged bowie knife - 10-12 inches with a comfortable leather sheath attached to the belt.

quote:

There are a lot of benefits to a nice rugged bowie knife - 10-12 inches with a comfortable leather sheath attached to the belt.

She'll be carrying the Kershaw Cryo II Titanium I gave her.

mention to them that there can be all 4 seasons out there that time of year, even in the same day.
they might also consider being more flexible with their itinerary and be prepared to hit different areas depending on the weather. and don't underestimate water when it heats up.

Looks like an awesome trip and much of it is in my "backyard" or I have been there before.

FWIW, my wife has taken my kids (when they were young) to most of those places without any issues at all.

The only caution I would throw out is Antelope Canyon. it is one of the most amazing places I have ever seen and the guides are good about making sure you are not in the slots if rain is coming (horrible tragedy many years ago) but for the most part you are on the Navajo res and different rules apply, especially if one of carrying. Oh, yeah and while AZ does not do daylight savings time the res does so time can get a little funky depending on where you are standing...Try managing a 50 person production crew with a hard 4am call time when no one if really sure what time it is!

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
I can only wonder at how some people view the world around them. Millions of people travel every year in this country without being raped, robbed, abducted, or killed, and almost none of them even worry about such things. And of the people one or more of those things does happen to, a large percentage are victimized right in their own towns, homes, or places of work where they spend most of their time. Do we ask, “My daughter goes to work every day; is it safe?”

A little situational awareness goes a very long ways, and on a hiking trip good, appropriate hiking gear makes the experience much easier and more enjoyable.

Because in their information bubble, they are constantly being bombarded by the "facts" that refugees and immigrants are all suicide-bomb-vest-wearing jihadis who can't wait to wreak havoc on the Real America (TM) homeland and install Sharia law; that the millions of Messican illegals, when they're not illegally voting, are raping and robbing and driving without insurance millions of times day in Real America (TM); and those hopped-up Negro junkies are asking "where da white wimmen at?"

Fear, man . . . we've got to be fearful.

Forgot to add this in post above.

Three people or more is the minimum number to go hiking or back packing.

In case someone falls and gets hurt one to stay and comfort the injured and one to hike for help.

At times two can rig something up and carry the injured out.

Each person should also carry a metal whistle. Why metal ? They usually still work if you fall on them.

Fire starter. Cotton dryer lint works well.

These were some of the requirement when I was a scout leader and with survival prep. Always carry a metal whistle.

Three blasts on a whistle is the same as three rapid gun shots. Someone is in trouble and needs help. The sound carries a long way.

They may want to be sure they bring some moleskin especially if the boots are new.

On those hikes they'll want to carry and drink a LOT of water. It's real easy to become dangerously dehydrated in the desert.

quote:

Originally posted by ontmark:
Forgot to add this in post above.

Three people or more is the minimum number to go hiking or back packing.

In case someone falls and gets hurt one to stay and comfort the injured and one to hike for help.

At times two can rig something up and carry the injured out.

Each person should also carry a metal whistle. Why metal ? They usually still work if you fall on them.

Fire starter. Cotton dryer lint works well.

These were some of the requirement when I was a scout leader and with survival prep. Always carry a metal whistle.

Three blasts on a whistle is the same as three rapid gun shots. Someone is in trouble and needs help. The sound carries a long way.

They may want to be sure they bring some moleskin especially if the boots are new.

Excellent advice. And it sounded familiar (most of my scouting in the past ten years has been with Cub Scouts). Include some matches with the fire starter, also a first aid kit. And water + energy bars (which I just saw you mentioned earlier).

I was thinking of having a Special Ops team follow them, but that would be a bit much.

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:
On a more serious note, I'd just recommend they not underestimate their conditions. Utah can be unpredictable. Something as simple as setting up camp on a sandy bar can be fatal in a flash flood from a storm miles away. They'll most likely be safe from human predators, but when the Jr DFs go out, I make sure they are not defenseless. That, and a sober careful plan with lotza pics texted back to dad ought to produce a life time of memories! They are in for a treat.

I am looking of a pic at my dad hiking in the Zion Narrows (pic taken by my brothers, I wasn't invited ). Incredible scenery/experience. But a flash flood can hit and there is only one ending possible.

I took a look at her itinerary.

First, it looks like a fantastic trip and a few of the parks on her list are one's I'd like to visit at some point.

quote:

My main concern is safety.
1. Driving. People die on road trips. Skillful, and Attentive driving is imperative. Don't drive tired or distracted.

Valid concerns, but she is an adult and can chose her friends wisely. If not, it's too late by this point to question her choice in company.

quote:

2. Protection, especially at night. You don't have your CCW. I wish you did. Stay together. Don't any of you wander off away from the other two. Don't camp too remote, try to stay within earshot of other campers.

Again, valid concern, but has more to do with her own judgement and that of her friends.

At some point the scariest thing you can say to her is "You're on your own."

quote:

My secondary concern is that your feet hold up.

If you are hiking every day will you get blisters?

No, hiking every day will not give you blisters.

Hiking even a few hours in poorly fitting shoes will give you blisters.

Blisters occur because there is more room in the shoe than your foot takes up and your foot scootches around inside the shoe creating "hotspots" (areas where there is repeated friction). For the sake of argument: imagine you want to ship a finely ground glass lens in a box lined with sandpaper. Do you just drop the lens into the box, tape it up and drop it off at the post office? No, you would wrap the lens in cushy packing material so that it does not come into contact with the inside walls of the box and does not shift around inside the box. The same thing is happening inside a boot. If you wear a boot that is size 9 and you are size 8, you are probably going to get hot spots because your foot is going to be sliding back and forth every time you take a step. Hot Spots become blisters or worse.

To avoid blisters, get boots that fit well, and always carry an extra pair of socks (you mentioned this, but not for the same reason). Sometimes boots, or shoes in general fit in well on some parts of your foot and not others. For instance the heel cup might be really snug, but the toe box is too wide. Other than getting a new pair of shoes, you can often solve this by wearing a second pair of socks--this is a good "field expedient" way of preventing blisters and fills out the boot so that you don't have and slipping inside the shoe. So my suggestions to you would be to get her:

1) Good summer-weight hiking boots (REI can help with that)
2) Several extra pairs of socks and make sure she carries one extra pair with her whenever she's on the trail. If she starts feeling a hotspot coming on, put on that extra pair of socks.
3) Plenty of break-in time with her new boots so she knows how they'll behave once on the trail.

quote:

Any other advice?

The longest hike on her itinerary is 8 miles.

Other posters have suggested a good water carrying system (like a camelback).

I'm going to suggest something else: trekking poles. Yes they look goofy, but they are relatively cheap, don't weigh anything, and really help on hikes where elevation is an issue. Sure she is young and invincible, but they really do help on that last mile. They help with both balance and speed. When going downhill you can brace yourself and take some weight of your lower back. When going up, you can push off them and kind of do a "skiing" action, pushing yourself forward using your arms (if she skis or has ever been on an elliptical machine, this will come naturally).

Finally, if she runs across a rattler sunning on the trail, it would be nice to have a long pole in your hand to keep between herself and the snake.

Always have a plan in case there is no cell coverage. Also, expect your battery to die in areas where there is no cell reception--signal search mode on cell phones really kills the battery so maybe a auxiliary charger might not be a bad thing to send her off with (those converters that can charge phones from regular batteries).

Finally,

Take that damn google doc off public view. It's bad opsec. We're probably not the only ones looking at it--I'm thinking stalker types from her school. That kind of who-when-where information only needs to be shared between the three of them and maybe their parents.

quote:

Originally posted by Holger Danske:

Because in their information bubble, they are constantly being bombarded by the "facts" that refugees and immigrants are all suicide-bomb-vest-wearing jihadis who can't wait to wreak havoc on the Real America (TM) homeland and install Sharia law; that the millions of Messican illegals, when they're not illegally voting, are raping and robbing and driving without insurance millions of times day in Real America (TM); and those hopped-up Negro junkies are asking "where da white wimmen at?"

Fear, man . . . we've got to be fearful.

Did you really feel the need to post this retarded crap?

quote:

Take that damn google doc off public view. It's bad opsec. We're probably not the only ones looking at it--I'm thinking stalker types from her school. That kind of who-when-where information only needs to be shared between the three of them and maybe their parents.

This was going to be my suggestion as well. No need for us to know her complete detailed itinerary.

quote:

Finally,
Take that damn google doc off public view. It's bad opsec. We're probably not the only ones looking at it--I'm thinking stalker types from her school. That kind of who-when-where information only needs to be shared between the three of them and maybe their parents.

I considered that. It has no personal information, just links to places they would like to go... all subject to change anyway. Nevertheless, I took down the link.

I suspect you aren't too worried about your daughter, but how much do you know about the other two she will be traveling with?

flashguy

flashguy,
I've known one of them for a long time. She played high school softball with my daughter. Very athletic, adventurous, but not crazy.
The other girl is one of their college friends who I don't know.